WINTER PARK, Fla. (March 14, 2026) – Propelled by a fast start in doubles, Rollins defeated Middle Georgia State Saturday afternoon in the first ever meeting between the two programs. The first point proved vital, as the Tars narrowly edged the visiting Knights, 4-2 for their ninth win of the season.
Peruse the
latest ITA poll and you'd find Rollins and Middle Georgia State side-by-side. Couple that with two teams hungry to make noise before looming conference play, Saturday's meeting had all the makings of being a thriller. Early on, it was the Tars doing all they could to ensure they would be the ones in the winner's circle.
Amina Abdulloeva and
Alyssa Novoa set the tone quickly from the middle. The pair, moving up a line from their doubles win last weekend, raced to a 6-2 victory. Despite the eight-day hiatus since last sharing the court, the duo had no troubles re-acclimating.
Shortly behind them were
Sydney Eckstein and
Milla Falster who rode the connection from Wednesday's match all the way to a 6-3 victory on court three. In the blink of eye, Rollins had secured the doubles point, now three singles triumphs were the only thing standing between the hosts and another tally in the win column.
Alyssa Novoa cut down the journey to a win in a hurry. Her 6-0, 6-1 win from line two moved Rollins into a 2-0 advantage. For Novoa, yielding only one game throughout the match was her best outing of the spring, and she picked quite the day to do it.
The Knights were pesky, living up to their name and charging back to tie up the match at two points apiece. The visitor's wins on courts four and six brought things to a standstill, but the Tar enlisted on court five was not about to surrender her post.
Amina Abdulloeva made her mark early on last year, showing her grit as a freshman with three final set victories in the span of five matches. Now as a sophomore, Florida's own showed her poise with bookended dominance to put Rollins up for good. Cruising to a 6-0 result in the opener, Abdulloeva's match was on the line when MGA's Yana Prihach equalized in set two. Still, maintaining her composure, Abdulloeva answered emphatically, going 6-1 to seal the deal.
Nisan Can followed a similar plot. Her dominance in set number one was followed by a narrow 4-6 outcome in the second. Yet, as she has done time and time again, Can ruled the court in the match decider. Her 6-0 masterpiece marks the seventh match where the Delaware transfer has swept her competition. This time, the wholesale pass by was good enough to lock in an overall match victory, the ninth of the season for Rollins.
Impressive in defeat, head coach
Tasi Purcell Batista gave the visiting Knights flowers telling one reporter post match, "Middle Georgia showed up to play today and we are grateful to have fought hard to get the win. They are welcome back any time as the matches were fun to watch."
But today, the Tars answered the bell. Coach Tasi continued, "Our energy in doubles was electric, and we got up fast in singles, which helped us in the end. Looking forward to getting back to conference next week!"
An exciting challenge indeed waits in the wings as Rollins travels down to Miami Shores to take on defending national champion Barry, on Tuesday afternoon. An ITA indoor championship earlier this season for the Buccaneers only adds to the opportunity the Tars have in the conference matinee. And you know what are born from great opportunities…
Check the action all season long at
Rollinssports.com.
